Re: Basenotes Reviews are getting better.

Mambo? What the!, I got this blind and put in the garbage the 2nd day, it just gave me a headache, and that was not the worst part. It smelt EXACTLY like the orange scent bathroom cleaner that I had in my bathroom.

Re: Basenotes Reviews are getting better.

Originally Posted by incedal

Mambo? What the!, I got this blind and put in the garbage the 2nd day, it just gave me a headache, and that was not the worst part. It smelt EXACTLY like the orange scent bathroom cleaner that I had in my bathroom.

Well, I don't think you are being very fair on Mambo.

Just because you have a fabulous smelling bathroom cleaner (or you wouldn't have bought it, would you?), shouldn't mean that Mambo is seen as being sub average just because it smells like the great smelling cleaner.

I really like Drakkar Noir. Should I not have liked it, if I'd smelled Hovex Clothing Protectors first, as they smell just like it?

Re: Basenotes Reviews are getting better.

Originally Posted by Renato

Well, I don't think you are being very fair on Mambo.

Just because you have a fabulous smelling bathroom cleaner (or you wouldn't have bought it, would you?), shouldn't mean that Mambo is seen as being sub average just because it smells like the great smelling cleaner.

I really like Drakkar Noir. Should I not have liked it, if I'd smelled Hovex Clothing Protectors first, as they smell just like it?

LOL! Agreed on that. If it smells of bathroom cleaner than it's one helluva bathroom cleaner. I really like Mambo. It's the best of the Claiborne line. Many would probably say that doesn't say much. But this juice has some merit. The only complaint I have against Mambo is the lack of development. It's as if you get the full orchestra of notes immediately in full and it's just a fade from there on. A more complex blend that's difficult to pick apart. Gets very boring if you wear it often. But as a pinch hitter for casual occassions (maybe even romantic if you're feeling froggy) Mambo is respectable enough.

Re: Basenotes Reviews are getting better.

Re: Basenotes Reviews are getting better.

Originally Posted by FragranceFan255

LOL! Agreed on that. If it smells of bathroom cleaner than it's one helluva bathroom cleaner. I really like Mambo. It's the best of the Claiborne line. Many would probably say that doesn't say much. But this juice has some merit. The only complaint I have against Mambo is the lack of development. It's as if you get the full orchestra of notes immediately in full and it's just a fade from there on. A more complex blend that's difficult to pick apart. Gets very boring if you wear it often. But as a pinch hitter for casual occassions (maybe even romantic if you're feeling froggy) Mambo is respectable enough.

Well, I haven't worn Mambo yet, but I like your comment about getting bored with it if worn often. When I think of it, that's my main problem with Perry Man.
Renato

Re: Basenotes Reviews are getting better.

Originally Posted by Thrax

Oh man, Mambo's the shit!

Hey - that's a genuine BASENOTES SCENT OF THE YEAR that you are disparaging.
There aren't many of them, so surely it is worthy of some respect to suit the dignity of the esteem it is held in, and its standing in our community.

Re: Basenotes Reviews are getting better.

Hey, great subject - maddening, silly, passionate, admirable reviews - a valuable resource in some cases, disappointing and not very helpful in others!
Rather than getting involved in a controversy on the interesting rating of newcomers 2001 (forgotten and famous ones) I looked at the review pages of the other two colognes you bought, Renato. They both get a friendly treatment by reviewers from the start. The verdicts are overall fair and constant in both cases. What made you say that directory reviews are getting better?
Unfortunately, some of the best fragrance reviews I found in forum threads never make it to the directory, and thus get lost among garbage.

Re: Basenotes Reviews are getting better.

Originally Posted by narcus

Hey, great subject - maddening, silly, passionate, admirable reviews - a valuable resource in some cases, disappointing and not very helpful in others!
Rather than getting involved in a controversy on the interesting rating of newcomers 2001 (forgotten and famous ones) I looked at the review pages of the other two colognes you bought, Renato. They both get a friendly treatment by reviewers from the start. The verdicts are overall fair and constant in both cases. What made you say that directory reviews are getting better?
Unfortunately, some of the best fragrance reviews I found in forum threads never make it to the directory, and thus get lost among garbage.

Thanks. I went through a phase of checking reviews and seeing scents I thought were pretty good being rubbished a lot (moreso during the "if it's not niche, it's not worth talking about" phase of two years ago) and scents being praised a lot, which when I smelled them either weren't particularly masculine or weren't very long lasting.

Here I've picked two I heard about, read the reviews, and received two masculine scent with reasonable longevity, with something a bit different about them. Two out of two is an excellent hit rate.

Today I was wearing L'Anarchiste and a woman in the office said "You'd better be careful or girls will be flocking round you with that stuff".

The last two scents I got from that site were New West and Duel. They've subsequently more than doubled the price of New West (from A$52 to A$107 (US$80)) and I'm glad the directory reviews encouraged me to get that one as well. I was expecting something controversial from Duel, and I got it (they've raised the price on that one as well from A$57 to A$62, but it is still heaps cheaper than at Strawberrynet at A$100).

To sum up, I currently have a feeling of confidence about the Directory reviews that I had 5 years ago, but didn't have a while ago.
Renato

Re: Basenotes Reviews are getting better.

Originally Posted by Renato

Hey - that's a genuine BASENOTES SCENT OF THE YEAR that you are disparaging.
There aren't many of them, so surely it is worthy of some respect to suit the dignity of the esteem it is held in, and its standing in our community.

I still think Clairborne Sport is better though.
Renato

I don't feel out of bounds to interject for Thrax on that one. I do believe he's saying it's THE shit in the positive sense.

Mambo does get boring if you wear it daily as I did until it was gone. It was only the third designer scent I ever had. Well before I got into collecting. And it was, at the time, the only one I had. It's a REALLY GREAT SMELL. But I chalk it up to the lack of development that allows it to become a little mundane.

Re: Basenotes Reviews are getting better.

Agreed there are some great reviews in here that are not posted in the directory. Come on folks!

Hi Grant,
Well, I often come across reviews here that I think are so spot on and/or elegant that I could work on my ones for the same scents for 10 years and never come close to them.

Would it be valid for a member to highlight and copy such a review posted here by say Member X, and then to paste it the Directory Reviews saying something like,
"Member X wrote the following in the Basenotes Community and I am in 100% agreement/ couldn't have expressed it any better if I'd bashed my head against a brick wall for a year/ only wish I could describe it as well as this ....."?
Renato

Re: Basenotes Reviews are getting better.

Hi Grant,
Well, I often come across reviews here that I think are so spot on and/or elegant that I could work on my ones for the same scents for 10 years and never come close to them.

Would it be valid for a member to highlight and copy such a review posted here by say Member X, and then to paste it the Directory Reviews saying something like,
"Member X wrote the following in the Basenotes Community and I am in 100% agreement/ couldn't have expressed it any better if I'd bashed my head against a brick wall for a year/ only wish I could describe it as well as this ....."?
Renato

I think its probably best that people only put their own reviews in the directory. Someone may have a valid reason why they don't want it in the directory, so I'd rather people didn't paste other members reviews.

Maybe if we see someone has posted a good review on the boards, we should encourage them to post it to the directory.

Re: Basenotes Reviews are getting better.

I think it may be the non-editability of the directory reviews which causes this. if you post in the forum, it can be the start of a discussion, you can hear other opinions which may inform your own, someone may identify a note for you which you hadn't quite pinned down etc. If you post a directory review and change your mind an hour or a month later, there is nothing you can do. I have some I would change....

"Don’t try to be original. Be simple. Be good technically, and if there is something in you, it will come out. ” - Henri Matisse.
"Wear R de Capucci" - Hirch Duckfinderreviews

Re: Basenotes Reviews are getting better.

Originally Posted by Basenotes Admin

I think its probably best that people only put their own reviews in the directory. Someone may have a valid reason why they don't want it in the directory, so I'd rather people didn't paste other members reviews.

Maybe if we see someone has posted a good review on the boards, we should encourage them to post it to the directory.

Hi Grant,
Yes, I agree it would be best if they put that review in themselves. I asked my question above in the manner I did because I like giving credit where credit is due, and don't want to copy and take as my own other people's good writing.

But suppose the person in question for whatever reason. despite the encouragement, chooses no to post his review, or has posted a shorter different one, or has left board. While not ideal, would it actually be invalid to post the following in the directory review,
"The following is taken directly from a Basenotes community posting, and I 100% agree with it's content."

When I think of all the good reviews that have disappeared over the years, either because they can't be located, or were lost when we changed boards, well I think it would be better if there were a mechanism by which some of them could preserved in the directory, despite the inaction of their original writer.
Renato

Re: Basenotes Reviews are getting better.

I'd love to have the ability to go back & change some of my reviews, lol. My tastes have sure changed a lot in the past year or so.

And that still boggles my mind that Mambo won, over some very worthy contenders. TM Cologne, even!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

Well, that's understandable - Mambo is a far better, stronger, more lively, more masculine, more long lived, more interesting scent than TM Cologne.

I paid A$25 for my bottle of Mambo, and A$25 for my bottle of TM Cologne, and Mambo was definitely the better buy. TM Cologne is good because my ladyfriend likes wearing it, she'd never wear Mambo.
Renato

Re: Basenotes Reviews are getting better.

That's interesting, I didn't know one could rate threads till you mentioned it just now.

So I went looking for how to do it, and there it was, where it's probably always been. How about that?
Renato

I didn't notice this gimmick until the last but one update myself. You can now express your displeasure with feminine frag topics on this masculine board! Imagine if in the next step we can shoot at reviews !

Re: Basenotes Reviews are getting better.

Originally Posted by narcus

I didn't notice this gimmick until the last but one update myself. You can now express your displeasure with feminine frag topics on this masculine board! Imagine if in the next step we can shoot at reviews !

I can't do that anymore as this is now a site for,
"Male Fragrance Discussion For the discussion of men's fragrances, and fragrances worn by men"
Renato